Mater Dei High School is a private, Catholic, co-educational secondary school in

Santa Ana, California Santa Ana () is the second most populous city and the county seat of Orange County, California. Located in the Greater Los Angeles region of Southern California, the city's population was 310,227 at the 2020 census, making Santa Ana the List of ...

. It is located in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange. Mater Dei is known for its strong sports programs, especially in football, and for its multiple graduates who have won the

Heisman Trophy The Heisman Memorial Trophy (usually known colloquially as the Heisman Trophy or The Heisman) is awarded annually to the most outstanding player in college football. Winners epitomize great ability combined with diligence, perseverance, and hard ...

. As of 2022, the school has had 23 Gatorade Players of the Year. The Football team plays in the Southern Section Division 1, and most recently won the CIF State Championship during the 2021 season. There is a total of 25 sports teams at the school, with 71% of the athletes being on the Honor Roll.

Controversy

The school has received mixed attention in local media due in part to their method of scouting athletes from public high schools in due process of offering scholarships as a part of recruitment for their acclaimed football program. In 2021, a lawsuit was filed alleging that systemic hazing pervaded the football program resulting in a "brutal locker room altercation." Another 2021 lawsuit alleged that two Mater Dei football players severely injured a classmate in an orchestrated attack. Orange County bishop

Kevin Vann Kevin William Vann (born May 10, 1951) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He was named bishop of the Diocese of Orange in Southern California by Pope Benedict XVI, succeeding the retiring bishop, Tod Brown, on September 21, ...

responded with a public statement supporting the school's leadership and criticizing the "media frenzy." The school announced it would commission an independent investigation into the allegations. In January 2022, a female alumnus of Mater Dei filed a lawsuit following the surfacing accusations of hazing, alleging that she was sexually assaulted by a former football coach during the late 1980s.

Sports

Mater Dei High School’s mascot are The Monarchs. They currently support over 15 Men’s sport teams and 15 women sport teams: Baseball(Varsity,JV,Freshman) Basketball(Varsity,JV,Freshman) Cross-Country(Varsity,JV) Dance Team(JV, Freshman) Football(Varsity,JV,Freshman) Golf(Varsity,JV) Ice Hockey(Varsity) Lacrosse(Varsity,JV) Soccer(Varsity,JV,Freshman) Swimming(Varsity) Tennis(Varsity,JV) Track & Field(Varsity,JV,Freshman) Volleyball (Varsity,JV,Freshman) Water Polo (Varsity,JV,Freshman) Wrestling (Varsity,JV)

Notable alumni

Sports

* Matt Barkley –

NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the major ...

quarterback *

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– Olympic Water Polo Player * Colt Brennan – NFL quarterback *

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- NBA Center *

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– basketball player * JT Daniels –

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quarterback for the West Virginia Mountaineers *

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– NFL tight end *

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–

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power forward and center *

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– MLB second baseman *

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- NFL

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Spencer Freedman Spencer Freedman (born June 24, 1998) is an American college basketball player for the Harvard Crimson of the Ivy League. He attended Mater Dei High School in Santa Ana, California, where he was ranked among the top players in California. Freedm ...

(born 1998) – college basketball player for the Harvard Crimson *

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– NBA

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– Mixed martial arts fighter *

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– NFL linebacker *

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– Major League Baseball player * Vince Hizon – American-born former Philippine Basketball Association player *

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– NFL center * Mike Hopkins – NCAA basketball player and coach * John Huarte –

winner and NFL quarterback *

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– professional

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player * Chris Jackson (1988) – NFL wide receiver * Stanley Johnson – NBA

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– professional basketball player *

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– professional basketball player *

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– Heisman Trophy winner and NFL quarterbackBen Bolch
Leinart Chosen State Player of Year
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– MLB shortstop and coach * Daniel Meyer - Major League Baseball player *

Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis Kaleena Jordan Mosqueda-Lewis (born Kaleena Jordan Lewis, November 3, 1993) is an American professional basketball player who is currently a free agent. Prior to enrolling at the University of Connecticut she played for Mater Dei High School in S ...

– WNBA

Katin Reinhardt Katin Thomas Reinhardt (born August 21, 1993) is an American professional basketball player for Belfius Mons-Hainaut of the Pro Basketball League. A native of Laguna Beach, California, he played high school basketball at Mater Dei High School in ...

– professional basketball player * Robbie Rogers – MLS winger *

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– NBA forward-center * Katie Lou Samuelson –

/forward in the WNBA * Sergio Santos – MLB relief pitcher *

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– basketball analyst for ESPN and former NBA guard *

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– MLB relief pitcher *

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- USFL

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- NFL wide receiver * Ryan Stonehouse – American football punter, NCAA record holder *

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– NBA

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* Matt Treanor – MLB catcher * Michael Wang – NCAA basketball player *

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– NCAA basketball

* Travis Wear – NBA basketball forward *

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– NFL football player *

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– former NCAA football quarterback *

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– silver medalist at the 1979 Pan Am Games in the pole vault *

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– Heisman Trophy winner and

quarterback for the Alabama Crimson Tide

Other

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– film director/animator * Mike Gallagher (2002) – United States Congressman from

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(2017–present) * Bob Gunton – actor * Ashley Hartman – actress * Jeff Lewis – real estate agent and investor *

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– film actor, comedian, director, film editor, film producer, and screenwriter *

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– author *

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– actor, speaker *

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– Bishop of the

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* Victory Tischler-Blue – singer, film producer, director, photographer, and member of the

all-female band An all-female band is a musical group in popular music that is exclusively composed of female musicians. This is distinct from a girl group, in which the female members are solely vocalists, though this terminology is not universally followed. While ...

The Runaways * Jennifer Warnes – singer, songwriter, arranger, and record producer * Juan Zarate (1989) – Assistant Secretary of the Treasury (2001–2005) and Deputy National Security Advisor for Combating Terrorism (2005–2009) *

Shelby Rabara Shelby Ann Narito Rabara Shum (née Rabara; born October 5, 1983) is an American actress and dancer who has appeared in a number of films, television series and commercials as both an actress and a dancer. Rabara is known for providing the voice ...

– actress, voice over actress, and dancer

References

External links

* {{authority control Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange Catholic secondary schools in California High schools in Santa Ana, California Educational institutions established in 1950 1950 establishments in California